Share

Abba – Dancing Queen03:52

“Dancing Queen”

is a song by the Swedish group ABBA, and the lead single from their fourth studio album, Arrival. It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson. Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus also produced the song. It was released as a single in Sweden on 16 August 1976, followed by a UK release and the rest of Europe a few days later. It quickly became a monumental worldwide hit, receiving extensive radio airplay and gaining popularity at nightclubs. It became ABBA’s only number one hit in the United States, also topping the charts in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, West Germany and Zimbabwe, and reaching the Top 5 in many other countries.

Musically, “Dancing Queen” is a Euro pop version of American disco music. As disco music dominated the US charts, the group decided to follow the trend, replicating the “Wall of Sound.” The song alternates between “languid yet seductive verses” and a “dramatic chorus that ascends to heart-tugging high notes.” It features keyboard lines by Andersson, which accentuate the melody’s sophistication and classical complexity, while Ulvaeus and Andersson interlace many instrumental hooks in and out of the mix. Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog’s layered vocals have been noted for their dynamism, “[negotiating] the melody’s many turns flawlessly.”Lyrically, the song concerns a visit to the discotheque, but approaches the subject from the joy of dancing itself, thus having a greater emotional content than many disco songs.